Colombia's FARC holds its first political rally

(2 Sep 2017) Former leftist rebels in Colombia have chosen a familiar-sounding, if polarizing, acronym for their fledgling political movement - FARC. The new party is to be known as the Alternative Communal Revolutionary Forces - or FARC. It held its first political rally with thousands in attendance on Friday. Addressing the rally and promising a "commitment to peace, democracy and social justice for Colombia" was Rodrigo Londono, the FARC leader better known by his nom de guerre Timochenko. On Thursday 900 members of the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia voted overwhelmingly to change the group's name to the Alternative Communal Revolutionary Forces, scrubbing any reference to its armed past. The decision came as part of a week long congress in which the former rebels were mapping out their future political strategy after laying down their weapons as part of an historic peace deal. While ex-combatants are proud of their insurgent past it remains to be seen if regular Colombians are ready to vote for a party with a name they've grown to associate with violence during the nation's half-century conflict. On Sunday, the former rebels initiated the launch of their political party, vowing to upend Colombia's traditional conservatism with the creation of an alternative leftist coalition. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...